Playwright

In 1978 Stephen was awarded the Thames Television Writers’ Award and became resident writer at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield. Plays produced there include SQUEAKERS AND STRAGS, FINAL WAVE and the much performed GIRL-TALK.

THE OLD ORDER written for Birmingham Repertory Theatre won the Arts Council John Whiting Award in 1979. PIGGY-BACK RIDERS [1981]and NAKED IN THE BULL RING [1985] completed a Birmingham trilogy.
In 1982 THE BOTTOM DRAWER opened at the Oxford Playhouse with John Gordon Sinclair, Leslie Ash and John Bird before a national tour.

Curtains

In 1987 CURTAINS opened at Hampstead Theatre before transferring to the West End. Awards for CURTAINS: Drama Magazine award for Best play; Most Promising Playwright from both London Evening Standard and the Plays and Players London Critics awards. The play has since been translated into several languages and been performed all over the world.
CROSSING THE LINE [1987] was written for Theatre Foundry, a touring company in the Black Country and later produced at The Orange Tree theatre in Richmond, London.
In 1990 Stephen wrote the Birmingham City Centenary play with Ann Devlin and David Edgar.
OVER A BARREL [1991] with David Threlfall and Frances Barber, directed by Michael Attenborough, opened at the Palace Theatre, Watford and won the Writers Guild Award for Best Regional Play. In the same year STITCHED UP opened at the Octagon Theatre Bolton and was nominated for Best New Play in the Manchester Evening News Theatre Awards.
In 1992 Stephen wrote a play for young people, CASSIE, as part of the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Antigone Project.
WHAT THE HEART FEELS [1996] opened at the London’s Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond and Stephen was nominated for the Lloyds Private Banking , Playwright of the Year.
In the same year CURTAINS had its New York premiere, directed by Scott Elliot for the New Group. It transferred to the John Houseman Theatre and won two Obie Awards.

In 2018 the play was revived in London to great acclaim.

Curtains is published by Samuel French in the UK and the Dramatists Play Service in the USA.